What we watched: Oklahoma City at Dallas. Those in-the-huddle sound bites are beyond useless. During a second-quarter timeout, Scott Brooks urged the Thunder by saying, "No threes, no layups." Oh, so you want your defense to force long twos, the worst shot in basketball? Genius. To be fair to Brooks, there's really not much to say there—the game plan is already set and players are getting water, wiping sweat off their faces, and generally not paying attention. Still, something insightful would be welcome. Instead, we're subjected to the irrationally intense encouragement of every middle school basketball coach in America.

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What we're watching (all times EST, unless noted): Carolina at Boston in NHL hockey at 7. Duke at Virginia Tech (ESPN) and Nebraska at Northwestern (ESPN2) in men's college basketball at 7. Chicago at New York (TNT) in NBA basketball at 8. Southeast Missouri State at Murray State (ESPNU) in men's college basketball at 8. UCLA at Washington (ESPN) and South Carolina at Florida (ESPN2) in men's college basketball at 9. Portland at Santa Clara (ESPNU) in men's college basketball at 10. Denver at Los Angeles Clippers (TNT) in NBA basketball at 10:30. Gonzaga at Brigham Young (ESPN2) in men's college basketball at 11.

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Angelo Dundee, RIP: "In more than 60 years in professional boxing, Dundee gained acclaim as a brilliant cornerman, whether healing cuts, inspiring his fighters to battle on when they seemed to be reeling or adjusting strategy between rounds to counter an opponent's style. 'In that one minute, Angelo is Godzilla and Superman rolled into one,' Dr. Ferdie Pacheco, who often worked with Dundee and then became a TV boxing analyst, once remarked.' 'You come back to the corner and he'll say, ‘The guy's open for a hook,' or this or that,' Ali told The New York Times in 1981. 'If he tells you something during a fight, you can believe it. As a cornerman, Angelo is the best in the world.'" [New York Times]

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At least Deion is still attracted to Pilar: "Pilar Sanders claims Deion Sanders is holding her as a ‘financial hostage' ... completely severing her cash flow ... and has only offered to give her money in exchange for sex ... this according to new court papers obtained by TMZ. Pilar has filed an emergency motion in a Texas courtroom ... claiming the NFL legend has canceled her credit cards and left her without any financial means to support herself and their children ... and she needs the judge to force Deion to give her money so she can survive. In the docs, Pilar claims, ‘Since [Deion] filed for divorce on December 21, 2011, he has given [Pilar] $300.00 and offered her money in exchange for sexual favors.' She then notes, ‘Pilar turned down the money.'" [TMZ]

Why is Bill Belichick smiling?: "By all accounts, the version of Bill Belichick that showed up at this year's Super Bowl is a kinder, gentler version of the Hoodie. Or funnier. Whatever it is, Belichick's clearly in a chipper mood this week. But what's the cause? Well, Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker has one theory: Belichick's dating life. ‘I don't know, I think he's enjoying himself,' Welker said when asked about Belichick's demeanor. ‘I think he's got a lady in his life, so that could definitely be the case; I don't know. We're just coming here to try and win a ballgame. However we do that or whatever demeanor we have to take, that's what it's going to be.'" [Eye On Football]

Your Monkey Controlling A Robotic Arm Interlude:

It's true, Brandon Jacobs ruined everyone's fantasy season: "Note to all fantasy-football aficionados: Brandon Jacobs doesn't like you. Jacobs, the Giants running back, spent part of his team's Media Day session Tuesday discussing just how much he despises fantasy football and its popularity. Jacobs said that 90% of the fans who approach him try to talk to him about their fantasy teams. He finds their questions aggravating. ‘I'm like, 'You know, man, I'm on the real team,' he said." [WSJ]

Mystery solved: "With his name, Chauncey Billups should be leading Parliament, not fastbreaks. It turns out there is no mystery to the very British-sounding label placed on him at birth. ‘My mom just liked the sound of it,' he says." [LA Times]